


Deafening Silence

by Moera



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff, Full Shift Werewolves, Good Theo Raeken, M/M, Post-Canon, Pre-Relationship, Theo Raeken-centric, set directly after 6b
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2020-01-03
Packaged: 2020-06-24 01:27:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19713511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moera/pseuds/Moera
Summary: Tumblr Prompt: There is a common saying about the calm before the storm. But no one ever talks about the deafening silence after the storm hit.~~~That's my take at what might happen after the series officially ended





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> TW: The first chapter is a bit angsty, but it will get better with the next. There will still be angstier parts in the following chapters, but I will warn again in the respective chapters.
> 
> Big thanks goes out to @manonlemelon @endraking and @xtarmanderx for helping me spiral a bit and keeping me motivated. I love you guys and I'm so happy to get to know you ♥♥
> 
> I hope you enjoy this story :)

It’s finally over. The fight is over and they won. He still can’t really believe it. If he’s being honest with himself he didn’t really think they would make it out alive. The odds seemed to be against them. But they persisted. And they came out as winners. 

But are there ever winners in a war? He doesn’t think so. Nobody ever wins a war. There are just those who survived and those who didn’t. The adrenaline is still pumping through his veins, his senses still in overdrive. All he wants now is to crawl in a bed and never come out again. But even though this battle is won, the war is still far from being over. There are still hunters out there who want every supernatural dead. But that’s a problem for the future. 

They meet at Scott’s house, checking who made it out alive and who didn’t. In the end both sides lost people. Nobody wants to be separated from the pack tonight, so after everyone’s showered and in fresh clothes, they spread as many blankets as they can find on the floor, creating a big nest. In it lies every member of the pack, supernatural or human, old as new members. Despite the battle being over and the adrenaline left their bodies, not everybody falls asleep immediately. Just to much on edge still to sleep. But he has enough control over his heartbeat that he at least pretends to be asleep. Still lying wide awake as every other member slowly drifts of to sleep. 

The next morning arrives way to quickly for his likes. Feels like he only just fell asleep when noises wake him. Year’s practice have him keep his heartbeat still sounding asleep, his eyes still closed. He checks every heartbeat in the house, everyone still fast asleep. Except the one heartbeat in the kitchen, which belongs to the Alpha’s mother. It smells like freshly brewed coffee and frying eggs. He has to suppress his stomach from growling. When was the last time he ate something? He doesn’t really remember. 

Coming back from hell has messed with his sense of time. But he is sure that it’s been quite a while when he can’t even remember. Though he’s not the least bit surprised. It’s hard to come by food when you’re legally dead. Coming back to life hasn’t exactly left him any kind of money. 

He thinks of leaving the house before anyone wakes up, but the chance of a free meal is just too good to pass up. So he quietly leaves his place in the nest and tiptoes his way to the kitchen. He completely ignores the stare he can feel bore into his neck and goes straight for the coffee machine. On days like this it’s the only thing keeping him awake beside his fear of nightmares. And without a steady income coffee has become something like a luxury to him. 

The first sip nearly burns his tongue but he missed the taste so much that he doesn’t care. Only then does he turn around and acknowledge the other person in the room. Melissa looks as tired as he feels. She too is cradling a cup of coffee in her hands, a plate full of eggs and toast sits untouched next to her finished one. So she must’ve somehow known that she would soon be joined by someone. She doesn’t say anything, just nods to the plate next to her, inviting him to sit down and eat. He doesn’t have to be told twice. He tries to eat at a normal pace but Melissa’s not impressed stare tells him he’s failing. So he doesn’t try anymore and just wolfs it down. Despite being such a simple dish it tastes like heaven. At least for him. 

He’s at his second cup of coffee when the others slowly wake up. Some shuffle to the bathrooms, others joining them in the kitchen. Theo sneaks his way out the back door and lets the voices from inside wash over him. He sits on the patio, his feet dangling freely in the air. He enjoys the peaceful atmosphere, knows he should enjoy it as long as he can. Soon it will all be over again. 

The sun is shining and even the birds are singing. To onlookers it looks like just a typical day in Beacon Hills. But he knows better. Knows how close he came to never see another day like this. But against all odds, he’s still here. He doesn’t know why, isn’t sure if he even deserves it. So many people, good as bad, are dead. He’s not sure why he’s not one of them. But he has gotten a second chance at life as he got freed from hell. This time around he tries to be one of the good guys, tries to prove he’s worthy of the chance he was gifted with. 

He is so lost in thought he only notices he isn’t alone anymore when he hears a voice beside him saying his name. He looks up and sees the brown eyes of Scott looking at him. Now that Scott sees that he has his attention, he continues. “You should come back inside. We have a few things to discuss.” Theo has to suppress a shudder running down his back. This will be the time where they discuss what to do with him. If they let him live or send him back.

Reluctantly he follows Scott into the living room where every member of the original pack is sprawled on every available surface. The wolves from London must have left already because he doesn’t sees them anymore. He takes a quick count of the heartbeats and confirms his thought. He leans against a wall near the back door, the quickest escape route. Some habits just die hard. His arms are crossed. If they want to send him back he’s not going to make it easy for them. Though Liam broke the sword there’s still the possibility that they fixed it and may send him back. 

Scott again looks at him, speaking directly at him. “You will stay in Beacon Hills. I need you to keep the others who’re staying here safe. I know what you did for Gabe, so I know that you’re not the same guy we sent to hell. I also know that you won’t hesitate to do anything to keep them safe.” 

Theo is speechless for a moment. He hasn’t counted on Scott allowing him to stay. Much less that he trusts him with keeping his beta and his friends safe. Of course he will do everything in his power to keep them safe. But he didn’t think that Scott would trust him with that. He has done enough damage in the past that Scott shouldn’t trust him. But somehow he does. 

~~~~~

After that it doesn’t take long for everyone to go on their way. The older members finally leave for college. It was a goodbye with many tears, hugs and promises of weekly calls from everyone. Theo left before it got to sappy. 

He got in his truck and drove away without saying goodbye to anyone. Though Scott tasked him with keeping the puppies safe he knows most of the pack still would prefer to know he’s back in the ground. So he flees before someone can convince Scott that he should be sent back. 

But now that he’s on the road again he realises what a stupid idea it was to get in his car without a destination in mind. Now that the battle's over he doesn’t really know what to do with his life. He still wants to prove that he deserves the second chance he’s been given. He just has no idea how when most of them still hate him. 

First things first. He needs to plan. Driving without any destination in mind just loses gas he can’t afford to replace. So the first thing he needs is a way to make money. Though it would be easy to steal it it doesn’t feel right. That’s exactly what the old Theo would do and he wants to prove, to the pack but mostly to himself, that he isn’t that person anymore. 

He parks his truck in the big parking lot in front of the mall. He’s sure one of the shops in there is currently hiring staff. Wandering around the hallways he looks at every shop window, hoping for an ad that they’re hiring. On the first round through the mall he counts 5 shops that offer jobs. None of them are actually difficult, mostly cleaning stuff. Most people don’t like those jobs, him included, but he can’t afford to be picky.

The first shop he enters is a hair salon. The sign outside says they need someone to clean the floor. He asks to talk to the manager and gets taken to a little side door he supposes leads to a break room for the staff. In it is a women in her late 40s, reading a newspaper. A cup of steaming coffee stands next to her. Theo has to suppress his stomach from growling at the delicious smell wafting over to him. 

He offers the manager his hand, telling her what he wants. They talk a bit about what the job would entail. He really tries to make a good impression. There's just a little something that seems off. 

It's when she asks for his name. When he tells her she pales and she starts to reek of fear. She breathes out a shaky "You.. you're one of them. One of those monsters."

And that's when he understands her sudden change in behaviour. She somehow knows about him being a supernatural. Theo tries to placate her, tries to explain that he may not be entirely human but that he's not a danger to her. 

Now she almost screams, just a single word. "Out!" He knows this battle is lost. He gives her one last apologetic look and exits her office. He would've gladly slammed the door but he knows that would've scared the women more than she already was. And it might've alerted the other people still in the salon that something was wrong. 

He leaves the shop and thinks bitterly  _ "One job down, still got four left".  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you found any misspelled word or other errors feel free to point them out to me in the comments or on tumblr (@moera6) :)


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happened previously: The older members of the pack left again. Theo, still homeless, tries to find a job to get money.

It’s several hours later when he leaves the last shop. It didn’t get as bad as his first try but he still wasn't hired. Either because people didn’t want to hire highschool dropouts or because he couldn’t give them a home address. Like he chose to be homeless.

He feels completely drained. The sky darkened visibly by the time he makes it out of the mall. The parking lot is almost deserted. He climbs into his truck and shoves his hands into his hair, dragging on the strands. His stomach growls and reminds him that he hasn’t eaten since he left this morning. 

He takes his wallet out of his pocket and counts the little bit of money he can call his own. If he stretches it he can last another week, maybe two. Still hungry he lies down on the backseat and covers himself with a thin blanket he stole a while ago from the animal clinic. It still smells like different animals but it will have to do. He closes his eyes and tries to block out his thoughts. 

~~~~~

It feels like no time has passed when he wakes up again. His heart beating wildly in his chest, images of his nightmare still flickering in front of his inner eye. His coyote feels like running so that’s exactly what he does.

He takes of his clothes, leaves the car and shifts into his coyote form. As soon as he’s on four paws he takes of running. He runs for what feels like hours when he finally feels calm again. He debates on whether he wants to turn back or search for a place to sleep when he hears it. Voices whispering to each other. Footsteps of people bigger than him. He wants to run again when he recognizes the voice nearest to him. His curiosity is piqued.

So he walks closer without making a sound, thanks to his coyote’s small frame. Sheriff Stilinski speaks into his radio, asking if the detection dogs found him yet. Theo doesn’t know who “him” is supposed to be. But he is sure that he’s more successful in tracking “him” down than some mutts. His sense of smelling is better than that of a werewolf so it should be pretty easy.

With that thought in mind he begins sniffing the air and soon finds a scent trail that reeks of fear and sweat. He follows it easily and sees the man trying to hide on top of a tree. He can’t believe how stupid the man can be, thinking it was a good idea to climb on top of a tree without another way out.

So Theo barks loudly, scaring the runaway. His scent of fear gets stronger. Theo really hopes the cops will be here soon so he doesn’t have to endure this stench any longer than necessary. 

He seems to be lucky because Stilinski is the first one to show up. Stilinski seems confused for a moment at seeing a foreign dog standing there, baring his teeth at the top of the tree in front of him. After seeing the man sitting there, hugging a branch so he doesn’t fall off, he calls for backup, saying he found the runaway. 

The runaway seems almost relieved to see the sheriff. He screams “I give up! I’ll come down and surrender but please, call your dog back!” Theo wants to roll his eyes and tell the man that he clearly isn’t a dog. But he does as told, takes a few steps back and looks expectantly at the sheriff, waiting for him to do his job.

Stilinski looks surprised that the dog listened at the command but decides that’s a thought for later. For now he has to arrest the man who slowly makes his way down the tree, looking warily in Theo’s direction. 

Theo barks again at the man, seeing how he flinches in fear. He would’ve smirked if he were in his human body. Though he wants to be one of the good guys now, he can’t help himself for wanting to scare the idiot.

It doesn’t take long for the other deputies to arrive. They too look at Theo in confusion for a moment, before they catch themselves and take the already handcuffed man with them. Thinking about a job well done, Theo turns around, prepared to get back to his truck and try to sleep for another few hours, when Stilinski’s voice stops him. 

“Hey, wait for a moment. You seem to understand when someone is talking to you. And you don’t seem to have an owner. So what do you say, I’ll take you home with me and you can stay the night in a warm house.” 

Theo considers for a moment. Sure, he isn’t exactly a fan of the Sheriff and if he knew who he just invited he would backtrack as fast as he can. But the offer of a warm place to sleep sounds too good to pass up. So he nods once and follows Stilinski to his cruiser. 

~~~

It doesn’t take long for them to arrive at the Sheriff’s house. Theo’s just glad he’s finally out of the backseat of the cop car. He loves driving in a car but it’s a big difference when you can’t see where the car is going and you almost fly across the backseat at every corner taken. You would think a cop would drive more careful.

The Sheriff pulls a bowl out of a kitchen cupboard, fills it with water and places it on the floor. He sighs, rubs his hands down his face and turns to Theo again. “I’ll go to sleep. You can stay here. I’ll think of what to do with you tomorrow. Good night.” With that he turns around and heads up the stairs. 

Theo looks after him until he disappears behind a corner. Though he agreed to go with Stilinski, he still has no idea what to do now. He looks derogatively at the bowl and thinks _No way am I drinking out of this thing_.

He wonders if it’s safe to shift back. Tilting his head to the side he listens for the any noises from the other man. Only hearing soft snoring he shifts back.

Finally in his human body again, he walks over to the cabinets, pulls out a glass and fills it with water. After he drank two glasses he grabs an apple and eats it. Now that his most urgent needs are satisfied he walks over to the couch. There he lies down, covers himself with a blanket that smells like it’s in desperate need of a washing and closes his eyes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter, feel free to let me know 😊
> 
> A warning in advance, the next chapter will be more angst-y. I'll give another trigger warning in the chapter notes at the beginning of the third chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: This chapter is angst-ier than the previous ones. But it will get better I promise.  
> I hope you still enjoy this chapter :)

He wakes up a few hours later by the sun shining directly in his face. He really should’ve closed the curtains last night. But he can’t really be mad at himself, not when he feels more rested than he has in days. The night at McCall’s house he was still too wound up from the day they had so he didn’t felt like he’d gotten any rest as he woke up.

Now he just has to find a way to entertain himself until Stilinski decides his beauty sleep is over. He wonders what the old man decides to do with him after he wakes up.  _ Surely he realizes what an incredible stupid idea it was to let a seemingly stray dog stay at his home. He could’ve maimed him in his sleep. _

Though Theo would never do such things, not even when he was still evil, that’s just gross. But to Stilinski he is just an animal he found last night and decided to take home. Maybe Stilinski will come to his senses and bring him back to the preserve. Theo would definitely miss the comfy couch and warm room but he would understand the decision. 

It’s not like he deserves the treatment he got last night. He doesn’t deserve to sleep so comfy and be not plagued by nightmares about his sister for once. 

Now that he thinks about her, he realizes how much he misses her. They weren’t just brother and sister, they were friends. He always knew he could talk to her about everything that might bother him. She was there for him when the other boys thought it was okay to bully the kid with a heart condition. Just because he couldn’t run as fast as them without getting an asthma attack. 

This is the reason why the power the Dread Doctors promised was so alluring to him. He just wanted a normal childhood without the pain, both physical and emotional. He didn’t understood what the Dread Doctors meant by saying that Tara wanted him to have her heart. He thought she simply wanted him to be more courageous so she didn’t have to stand up for him every time. 

That's why he got angry at her and pushed her. He didn't plan for her to fall off the bridge. But as he saw her disappear under the surface he didn't knew what to do. He called for her, begged her to come back to him, to not leave him, but she never did. 

Somehow he must've fallen asleep from exhaustion, at least he thinks so because the next thing he remembers is waking up being strapped to a cold metal table. His sister lying on the table next to his.

He was so relieved to see her. She was back again, she didn't leave him. But why didn't she answer his plea, not even looking at him? When the masked figures started cutting her chest open he knew something must be very wrong. And as they held her heart in their hands he fell unconscious.

After he woke up it took him some time to realize what happened to his sister. At first he had tried to run away from them, getting back to his family. But as it hit him that his sister died because of him he felt crushed with guilt. He killed his sister, his parents daughter. How could he go back to them when he's the reason she's not there anymore?

Everything inside him hurt. He didn't know how to handle the guilt he felt. So he tried to shut off his emotions as best as he could. His sister died because of him and he didn't want anything like that to ever happen again. 

But what he couldn't turn off was his longing for a family, for people who understood him. That's why he was willing to do everything to get a pack of his own. 

Thankfully this plan backfired. Not that he liked the time he spent in hell but he needed it to see what a monster he had become. This strengthened his desire to become a better men now. He doesn't want to ever have someone look at him with so much betrayal as Tara did after he pushed her. But that's exactly what happened when he tried to take over McCall's pack. So he might not like it but he thinks he truly deserves what happened to him in his own personal hell. 

He is pulled out of his thoughts by the sounds of the shower turning on upstairs.  _ Time to shift back again. _ Theo sighs and lets the shift take over. He likes being in this form if he wants to get his head free, but having to shift so Stilinski doesn’t realize who he invited into his home last night is definitely not on his list of reasons why he loves to shift from time to time.

A few minutes later Stilinski descends the stairs, already wearing his uniform. The men looks around for a bit and finds Theo still lying on the couch. He sighs, “Did you really had to sleep on the couch? Now it’s full of fur.”. Theo would love to roll his eyes and tell Stilinski that he slept naked under a blanket so there can’t be much fur that fell off in the short amount of time he was shifted. 

Stilinski mutters something about needing a coffee to survive this day and enters the kitchen. Theo leaves the couch and stretches his muscles. 

He follows after the older man and sits down beside him. He tries his best at puppy eyes, hoping it will work to get him coffee. 

In the end he had to resort to the water in the bowl, which he hadn't intended to ever drink. But that's the only choice he has right now. At least his puppy eyes worked for getting something to eat. Even from a plate, though that stood on the floor too. But he knows he can’t be too picky if he wants the free food. So he swallows his pride and eats the food Stilinski made for him.

About twenty minutes later Stilinski seems to finally have finished his breakfast, Theo seriously wonders how the man could eat so slow without starving while doing so. While he waited for the older man he has lied down on the couch again. Partly because he wants to test when Stilinski’s patience will run out, but noone has to know that. 

At the same time he dreads the moment the plate will be empty. He still has no idea what Stilinski has planned for him. Though he knows the chances are really slim, he fears that Stilinski might’ve figured out that it’s him and has something bad planned for him. If he knows he at least doesn’t show it. Neither his heartbeat nor his chemosignals indicate that his fear is reasonable. He seems to be safe, at least for now.

That quickly changes when Stilinski tells him to get in the cruiser again, that they’ll go someplace “where he might belong better than the forest”. He lets his head hang down as he follows Stilinski outside. He doesn’t know why he dared to hope, even for a little bit, that this was going to work.

The drive is over rather sooner than later. He didn’t looked out the window as they drove, but he’s not surprised when he stands in front of the police station. Apparently Stilinski wants to know he’s locked up so he can’t cause any more damage than he already did. 

He just hopes someone will take care of his truck that’s still parked in front of the mall. This car holds everything he can call his own. Which isn’t much to begin with, but it’s his and only his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to let me know what you think of this chapter. This really inspires me and gives me ideas how to continue. 
> 
> I know Liam isn't part of the story yet but don't worry, I already know how I'll include him. I also added the slowburn tag, just so you know.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: There's light violence in this chapter. Nothing major, much less than in the show.
> 
> This chapter is barely edited so feel free to point out any mistakes. I hope you still enjoy this chapter :)

Internally he sighs, debating if he should try running away. But what good would it bring? If he gets imprisoned he at least gets three meals a day and has a roof over his head. Of course, that’s not what he wants, but it’s worlds better than what he has now. So maybe he should just suck it up and make the best out of the situation.

He gets pulled out of his thoughts when he sees that they passed the holding cells and are going further into the building. He’s confused as to what’s going on in Stilinski’s head when they enter a room labelled “training room”. In it are many boxes, tables and suitcases seemingly randomly placed on the floor.

Stilinski turns to him. His confusion seems to be visible in his eyes because the older man starts to explain. “As I told you, I think you’ll be of more use here. It’s remarkable how fast you found the runaway, without even having something that smelled like him. You seem to have potential in you. And I want to help you, if you’ll help me.”

Theo realizes what training is held in this room when Stilinski tells him to face away from him. Meanwhile the sheriff gets a few little sacks out of a box in the corner, lets Theo catch the scent of every one and then hides the first one. This one has a strong scent to it. Then he tells Theo to turn around and search for it.

Theo looks warily at the old man, wanting to know if he’s joking. But since he only gets a waiting look back, he seems to be serious. Well here goes nothing, he thinks and starts to follow the trail of what smells like valerian. 

It’s only a matter of seconds until he followed the scent to a blue suitcase, lying among the mess on the floor. He pushes the things inside out of the way with his nose and then steps back, eyes still on the now visible pouch and waits. Stilinski steps next to him, pets his head for a moment and then removes the pouch.

They repeat this exercise for quite some time. Theo learns how he is supposed to show he found the hidden sack. Now that he knows what Stilinski meant by helping him, he can’t really believe what he is being offered. Though the sheriff still doesn’t know who he’s talking with, he offered him a job as a detection dog at his station. 

For today they only trained with different herbs, but he hopes to use other stuff soon as well. As a chimera his sense of smell is way better than that of a dog so he hopes to not be restricted to one area. He knows of the different kind of detection dogs, drug detection and body detection, to only name two of them. Though he doesn’t wants to admit it, he feels completely exhausted when Stilinski finally calls it a day and says they can go back to his house now. He hasn’t had to use his sense of smell so much in one day before. 

This continues for another few days. He trained with other substances, legal as illegal ones, and managed to find the hidden sack every time. Sometimes another officer stood by and watched him train. Judging from the wondrous looks in their eyes they seem surprised that a seemingly wild animal is so willing to learn.

Today is the first time where Theo is allowed to accompany Stilinski and other officers. They chase a runaway who committed a case of hit and run. It started of simple enough. They drove towards the scene of crime and Stilinski let him out of the car. 

Two officers follow a reported sighting of their criminal on the other side of town. Meanwhile Theo catches his scent and starts running after him, in the opposite direction as the officers that drove off, Stilinski hot on his heels, gun in hand. Theo is the first to spot him, he ducks down low and slowly crawls towards the man. 

Stilinski stays back, murmurs in his radio that he found the man and needs backup. Then he steps closer and says loud and clearly “Stop right where you are. You are arrested.”

But the man doesn’t seem to like the idea because in the next second he’s turned around and attacks the sheriff. A shot breaks loose from the gun, missing the man. As they struggle for the gun Theo waits for his perfect moment to attack. 

He gets it a moment later when the man turns his back to him. Theo is fast to react, he charges at the man and jumps at his back. This causes both man to stumble and fall to the floor. He winces in sympathy when Stilinski’s head hits a stone, a thin trail of blood running from his forehead. 

But he recovers quickly and grabs for the gun that lays abandoned on the ground. Theo is still on top of the man and tries to stop him from getting up with bites and scratches. Stilinski puts a quick end to the struggle pointing his gun at the head of the man on the floor. Theo deems the situation safe enough to step away from the man.

After that it’s over rather soon. The requested backup finally shows up and handcuffs the man, taking him with them. Meanwhile the sheriff and Theo make their way back to the crime scene, Stilinski getting his head looked at by one of the paramedics. He gets a butterfly band aid for his forehead and is checked for a concussion. Other than a bit of overall pain he seems to be fine, considering how much worse he could be. 

Still, the paramedics want him to spend the night at the hospital, making sure they didn’t miss something. After a long discussion the paramedics allow Stilinski to drive to the hospital himself under the condition that he drives in front of the ambulance the whole time.

On the way to his cruiser he mutters curses under his breath but does as told. He gets in the car, with Theo in the backseat again, and heads towards the hospital. As promised the ambulance is right behind him the whole time. 

As they arrive at the ER a nurse tells the sheriff that the dog must stay outside. Theo is fully prepared to turn around and do just that when Stilinski speaks up. It takes a bit of convincing but Theo is allowed to stay if he behaves himself. Meaning he doesn’t go near other patients and doesn’t stray from the sheriff. 

The sheriff has to get a CT scan. As expected the scan doesn’t show anything unusual. The doc still insists Stilinski stays the night. Thanks to his job he gets offered a single-bed room. Though dinnertime is over already one of the nurses brings in two plates of today’s dinner. One is placed on the nightstand next to the bed Stilinski’s currently sitting in, the other is placed in front of Theo. Theo looks up in surprise, hopes the nurse sees the gratitude in his eyes.

Both men eat their food in silence. The Sheriff falls asleep shortly after. The painkillers finally starting to work their way through his system.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everything medical related in this chapter is what I got from 5 min google-ing. So I don't know if what I wrote makes sense, let's just pretend it does


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't really proof-read this so please point out if something doesn't makes sense. Otherwise, enjoy a new chapter

Stilinski snores softly in his sleep. Theo lies on the floor next to the hospital bed, his head resting on his paws. He feels guilty that the older man got hurt. Rationally he knows that he is not responsible for his injuries, that he did the best he could to help him. But feelings are never rational. 

The moonlight illuminates the room, causing the sheriff to look sicker than he is. It does nothing to make him feel better. Theo tries to make himself as small as possible, hiding his face under his tail. It takes him a long time to fall asleep this night.

It feels like no time has passed when Theo startles awake, panting. He brings his hands up to tug at his hair, feels them shake. He still feels phantom fingers on his chest, digging painful holes right above his heart. Belatedly he realizes that he shifted back in his sleep. 

His whole body goes rigid, he holds his breath and slowly turns his head towards the bed next to him. Stilinski’s breath is even, his heart beating slow and steady in his chest. He watches him for a few minutes, tries to match his breathing.

After what feels like an eternity but is probably just a few minutes he feels calm enough that he can focus on other things than his nightmare. He debates about going back to sleep but the stench of his terror, his fear, is still to strong in the room for him to even think about sleeping in it. 

So back to the woods it is, he decides grudgingly. He opens the door a little bit before he shifts back. Now on all fours he carefully opens the door wider and makes sure the corridor is empty before he walks fully through it and closes the door behind him with a paw.

He makes his way to the foyer without seeing someone. There’s just one tired looking nurse behind the counter. The men seems to be about his age. He would wonder what someone who should be in highschool or college is doing in a hospital in the middle of the night. But the hospital scrubs he wears are the same ones he’s seen Melissa wear countless times so he seems to be a member of the staff. 

He doesn’t has to wait long for his opportunity to escape as the guy empties his cup of coffee and immediately head over to the coffee maker to refill it. As soon as the guy has his back to him Theo makes his way through the automatic door leading outside. Even if the guy heard the door opening, which he seriously doubts, he wouldn’t be able to see Theo’s black fur in the dark outside.

He slowly trots through the streets, avoiding the headlights of passing cars. He doesn't need anyone calling the cops because they think an ownerless dog is running the streets alone at night.

Even though it's night he avoids the main road, knowing how crowded they can be even at night. He's on autopilot, trusting his hard earned instincts to lead him to his destination unnoticed from other people. The guilt still makes his heart ache, feeling bone-deep exhaustion. Memories of past times replaying in his mind.

Theo only comes back to reality when he's at the edge of the mall parking lot. His truck is still there, standing as lonely as he feels inside. Making sure nobody is there to see him he gets to his truck, shifts back to human and opens the door with a hidden spare key. Inside he climbs into the backseat, puts on clothes and climbs under the stolen blanket. Shivers wrack his whole body. Now in his human form again it's harder to suppress his emotions. He finds that he doesn't want to anymore and lets out everything he has forbidden himself for too long to feel. Tears stream down his cheeks, silent screams leaving him between panting breaths. It takes a long time until sleep finally takes him. 

The next time Theo wakes up is not because of another nightmare, surprisingly enough he had a dreamless night. This time it’s his growling stomach that demands his attention. Over the last few days he spend with Stilinski his body got used to having regular meals everyday. Though it isn’t too long since he last ate, the breakdown from last night took up a lot of his energy.

He still remembers his calculations about how long the little money he has to his name could last him. That’s if he spends it on food only. It’s a miracle no cop removed his truck because it hasn’t been moved in several days. So he needs a bit of the money to fill up his gas tank.

Theo adjusts the calculations in his head and sighs. The little bit of money he would have left, even if he doesn’t fill his tank completely won’t last him long. He tries to think of alternative ways to get either money or food. But without doing something illegal and risking going to jail for real this time, there aren’t many options left. He feels a little above begging random people for food, at least for now, so dumpster diving it is. 

He grabs his duffel bag, exits his car and casually makes his way over to the rows of dumpster on the other side of the parking lot. Luckily there’s no lock he has to pick. This way he would leave more traces. 

He again checks that no one sees him and then opens the first container that smells the most like food. The hunger finally makes him reach into the smelly contents and search for something to eat. He finds several cans of different vegetables. Just one or two days over the best-before date. 

Normally he would roll his eyes that someone would throw away food that’s clearly still edible. Now he’s grateful for it because it means he doesn’t have to endure his stomach growling for much longer. He packs as many cans in his bag as he can before he makes his way back to his car. 

Tonight’s dinner consists of one can cold beans. They taste awful but they fill his stomach so he clenches his eyes shut and scarfs them down. He could easily eat another one but his stomach doesn’t growl in protest anymore so he stops. 

After a short moment of thinking he backs out of the parking space. It’s a miracle that his truck hasn’t been towed off yet. He doesn’t want to risk losing his lucky streak. Checking that he has enough gas in his tank he heads towards the preserve. He pulls onto a dirt road barely big enough for his truck and drives until he’s out of sight.

Theo leaves his car and heads into the direction he remembers Malia’s old den being. There’s a river not far from it and he could really use a bath to get rid of the scent of garbage that still clings to him. After a few minutes of walking he’s at Malia’s den and gets out of his clothes. He places them out of sight in her den and shifts. Now on four paws he can hear the river about two miles from where he’s now. He slowly trots towards it, scaring a rabbit as he passes it almost soundless.

The water is in the process of warming up with the sun shining directly onto it. He knows how tricky even a small river can be so he goes only in until the water touches his belly. Then he lays down and lets the water flow beside him. He dips his head down under once but otherwise helds it above the surface. 

The water feels calm around him. Waves ruffling his fur and warmth slowly starting to seep in. Birds singing their songs in the distance. It makes him feel drowsy. As his eyes repeatedly fall shut he decides to leave the water. He climbs onto a large boulder next to the riverbed, lies down on it. It’s even warmer than the river was, the stone heated up quickly. This time he falls asleep just as he lays his head down on his outstretched paws.


	6. Chapter 6

It’s the middle of the night when Liam’s phone rings. It’s a testament to what he has experienced in Beacon Hills that he doesn’t question it, just accepts the call without looking at the caller id.

He should have. Because he’s greeted by none other than Sheriff Stilinski, telling him to get to Deaton’s asap. He also knows better than to question the older man, just agrees and ends the call. He pulls a hoodie and trousers from yesterday on and runs all the way to the clinic. Sure, his car would’ve been faster but it would also alert his parents and he really doesn’t have time to deal with them now. 

About ten minutes later he’s standing outside the clinic. He sees the sheriff’s cruiser and another car that must belong to the veterinarian himself. A quick count of the heartbeats tells him there’s three people inside.

Directly as he opens the door the smell of blood assaults his nose. A lot of blood. He enters the exam room and freezes for a moment. There on the table lies a black wolf that resembles the one that chased him and Mason through Beacon Hills High, forcing him to reveal his biggest secret to Mason. It’s heavily bleeding.

Deaton’s voice pulls him back to reality, telling him to hold the wolf down so he can check what caused the wounds. Meanwhile the sheriff tells them how he got woken up from a scratching at his back door and how he found the collapsed wolf there. 

“Why did you open the door in the first place? It could’ve hurt you!”, Liam demands to know from the sheriff.

The older man just gives him a dry look and says “I knew it wasn't going to hurt me.”

Deaton interrupts both of them, saying they can chat later. Liam tightens his grip on the wolf paws, holding them out of the way so Deaton can work. If they see him taking the animals pain, neither comments on it. 

"This is strange.", Deaton murmurs as he removes several bullets from the wolf's body. He stitches the wounds closed but doesn't say anything else. 

Liam wants to roll his eyes at the druids typical behaviour. Stating something is strange and than not saying why he thinks so. He takes a deep breath, rolls his eyes behind closed eyes and finally asks "What's strange? This is just a wolf that got shot. Nothing really unusual about it." Sheriff Stilinski smells like anger but Liam pays no attention to it. 

Deaton remains silent, he just grabs one of the projectiles and shows it to Liam and the sheriff, holding it under a magnifying glass. 

Sheriff Stilinski is the first one to break the silence. "Is that green powder on it? Why would someone put it on a bullet?" 

“I’ll have to do a few tests to figure out what it is. I’m gonna let you know as soon as I know more. For now we should let our patient rest, there’s nothing more we can do at the moment.” 

Liam turns back to the wolf, realizing he’s still holding onto it, though he’s no longer taking the animals pain. He removes his hands slowly as to not disturb the animal any more than it already is. He thinks he woke the animal when it turns his head towards him and lets out a low whine.  _ “Huh, that’s interesting”, _ he thinks and lays his hand on a paw of the wolf who immediately goes silent.

“Then I guess you’re both staying at mine tonight”, the sheriff concludes. Liam is about to protest when Sheriff Stilinski interrupts him, “He won’t get any rest without you it seems. I already know him so he won’t spend the night in a kennel, neither will you. You can’t tell your parents why a wolf is sleeping in your bed either, so it’s settled. You both will stay at mine tonight. End of discussion.” 

The sheriff looks at him with a stern look in his eyes. So Liam picks up the wolf and follows after him, rolling his eyes when he’s sure Stilinski won’t see him. He and the wolf stay in the back of the sheriff’s car, one hand constantly buried in fur. And if the wolf is not the only one who calms from the constant contact, nobody has to know that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess I should be honest with you, there will only be one, two max, chapters left. I'm kinda stuck atm so I don't know when the next update will be. I opened this chapter many times without adding anything, so I decided to just post it. Kinda like, now that it's out, I don't have to stress about it anymore. I'm sorry if it doesn't meet your expectations, I know it doesn't really meet mine. 
> 
> But enough with the bad mood, I hope you still enjoyed this chapter. Thanks to everyone who still reads this story.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soo I finally finished the this. I hope you enjoy this last chapter

The wolf still whines in his sleep when Liam removes his hand from it’s fur, so they decide Liam should sleep next to the wolf. Liam’s not worried about sleeping next to the animal, even if it should attack him, he’s a wolf himself and can defend himself if needed. As both wolves settle in for the night, Liam lying next to the wolf, one of his hands in the black fur, he takes a deep breath. The smell of pack surrounding him has him asleep in minutes. 

Liam wakes to whimpers coming from the animal next to him. The wolf is thrashing around, eyes closed like he’s still asleep. Can animals get nightmares?, Liam asks himself. He knows better than to pin the wolf down so he tries to sooth him with soothing words, slowly petting him when he gets calm enough to do so. The wolf turns towards Liam, head on his stomach and finally sleeps peacefully again. Even though the wolf is warm on him it takes Liam a while to fall asleep again.

The next time he wakes up is to the smell of coffee, wafting into the living room from the kitchen. Liam slowly opens his eyes and notices that the wolf is missing. Well, not really missing per se, but not next to him anymore. He must’ve gotten up without waking Liam up which is very strange because Liam is a light sleeper and usually wakes from the smallest noises. 

He hears Sheriff Stilinski talking to someone. He figures he must be calling someone because except him and the wolf nobody else is with them. So Liam lifts himself off the couch and enters the kitchen. The Sheriff is just ending the call, twisting emotions on his face. Liam raises one eyebrow at him and the sheriff sighs. 

“That was Deaton. He thinks he figured out what the green substance on the bullet was. I didn’t understand everything, but it seems like it locks him in his shifted form. Now only the alpha of his pack can get him to turn back.”

Liam looks at him perplexed, “Where do we find his pack? The only wolves living here are werewolves.”

The Sheriff looks like he just said something really stupid and Liam feels slightly insulted. “Boy, this isn’t a normal wolf. Even you must’ve noticed that. He smells different than wild animals do.”, the Sheriff prompts.

Liam shrugs, he hadn’t really noticed the smell of the animal. So he crouches down next to the wolf, closes his eyes and focuses on his sense of smell. His eyes open wide in shock as he indeed recognises the scent. “Theo? Are you Theo?”, he asks the wolf bewildered. 

He’s sure the wolf would’ve rolled his eyes if he could. Instead he just nods with his head once. “Did you know the whole time that it was Theo?”, he wants to know from the sheriff.

“Of course I did, boy. I don’t wear this badge just for the fun of it.”

Liam rolls his eyes, muttering curses under his breath, something about adults always keeping the important stuff to themselves.

“If it would be anyone else, I would say to call Scott. But Theo’s not part of any pack. So we need to find another way to get him out of his shifted form.”, the sheriff muses.

“You’re right, Scott would be no use with this. But you’re wrong about another thing. Theo’s not packless, he’s part of my pack.” Two pairs of eyes, one human, one canine, looks at him confused.

Liam directs his next question at the wolf, no Theo, still next to him. “What? Did you really think that after everything that happened that I don’t consider you a part of the pack?” The unmistakable scent of guilt pricks his nose and he shakes his head. “None of this guilty feeling crap. I would be dead without you, Theo. I know you’ve done some serious fucked up shit but you also saved my life countless times.” Liam doesn’t once break eye contact with him, needing him to understand how serious he is about this.

“You might not be an alpha according to your eye color. But in every other aspect you’re the alpha of the part of the pack that’s still here. So I think you should give it a shot.” Liam had almost forgotten that the sheriff was still there with them, had been too much focused on Theo.

So Liam shifts, his eyes glowing golden and roars as loud as he can at Theo. 

At first it seemed like nothing happened. But then the wolf ran into the living room. A few seconds later emerged Theo, again in his human form, naked except the blanket that covers him. He has tears in his eyes as he asks Liam if he truly meant what he said.

Liam steps forward and wraps his arms around the other boy, feeling as Theo buries his head in his neck. “Of course I do.”, Liam mutters. “You saved me more times than I can count. And you get me to calm down when no one else is able to. Theo, I think you’re my anchor.”

At that Liam feels the first tears wetting his shirt. He just pulls Theo towards the couch, sitting down and pulling Theo closer to him, hugging him tighter.

After Theo has finally calmed down again, he moves a bit away from Liam to look him in the eyes, arm still around each other. He mouths a silent ‘thank you’.

The sheriff clears his throat and both boys jump a bit, having forgotten that the sheriff was even there. “I’m glad the bullet didn’t cause too much damage, boy. If you want, you can still live here. I would be glad if you still wanted to work at the station with me. You did a way better job than any detection dog I ever worked with.”

Theo looks at him, confusion all over this face. “Why would you want that? Now that you know it was me the whole time?”

The sheriff just smiles at him. “As Liam already said it. You’re part of the pack now. And pack sticks together. So what do you say?” 

Theo lets out a disbelieving laugh, but nods all the same. He’s really happy that Stilinski still wants him around. He now has a place to sleep and a job! What else could he wish for?

He looks at Liam, sees him smiling his beautiful smile at him. Okay, there might be one more thing he wishes for. And according to Liam fleetingly looking at his lips he thinks that maybe Liam wants the same thing. Though he doesn’t wants to rush anything, they have all the time they want together. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm glad that I finally finished the story. Writers block has been a bitch. But that's over, at least for now. I hope you enjoyed the end

**Author's Note:**

> If you found any misspelled word or other errors feel free to point them out to me in the comments or on tumblr (@moera6) :)


End file.
